Regionalism and Community Building: Where will we stand?
Buzz words are great. Used properly, they transform complicated ideologies into succinct, easy to understand concepts. For example, everybody's favorite buzzword "branding" has moved from a perception of highly creative logos into a way to describe a collection of activity, all working together to create a desired (or sometimes undesirable) experience. But how many of us know what it really takes to build a brand? Net, we can all appreciate the value and follow the idea of branding, but without a thoughtful plan for key components, at the end of the day you'll end up with some really nice marketing materials and customers that are unsatisfied because no one returns a call or the product experience has missed expectations.
As many of you may know, I am a devout regionalist. As a P&G alum, a past executive vice president of a mid-size firm, former leader of tourism, and now president and CEO of an influential non-profit, I have been involved in regional activity for the past 5 years and hopefully I’ve made some important contributions. I love this town.
In the past year or so, we have all been asked to acclimate to the idea of regionalism. It builds on a Cincinnatian's strong sense of pride and an appreciation for our unique heritage. The catalyst for this paradigm stems from the regional development we are witnessing in our urban core, at the river's edge, and in new attractions and destinations. Embedded in all of this is the desire to have everyone contribute and experience the rebirth of our city. It’s kind of like patriotism.... the Cincinnati USA way. However, like the branding example above, when the concrete is laid, structures erected, and lights turned on, will we finally be a cohesive community? Are we creating an example of a polished outer-skin without attention to the connective tissue that will make all of this work? In this blog, you will provide the input to this.
Take neighborhoods for example. Remember when neighborhoods were filled with people that knew your name, watched out for your children, and you might get a ride to work because someone noticed that your car wasn’t working? Today, in new housing developments, you might get lucky to steal a glimpse of your neighbor before the garage door closes after they’ve pulled in from work.
What do new housing developments and regionalism have in common? They both are designed to bring people together with a common interest; but can any of them foster a sense of community? The answer is yes..... but you must have a plan for the connective tissue.
The nature of my blog is to highlight that true regionalism is more than having a physical infrastructure in place. I want it to be more than a buzz word. Wikipedia says “community is a social group, sharing an environment, normally with shared interests. A number of conditions may be present that affect the degree of cohesiveness of the participants.” In Cincinnati, when you consider differences in race, religion, sexual orientation, age, the high school you attended, and side of town that you reside in (sorry, I couldn’t resist it)... does our existing approach toward regionalism stimulate enough common interest?
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